SUV Review: 2006 Nissan Pathfinder

Originally published: August 10, 2011

SMALL

MEDIUM

LARGE

It makes you wonder if the stylists who create Nissan’s and Infiniti’s truck lines have split into two warring camps, lobbing spit balls at each other over their partitions. I can’t think of any other vehicle manufacturer that has such stylistically divergent product.

On one side are the sensitive souls who penned the beautifully sculptured Murano SUV and the macho/aggressive Infiniti FX35 and FX45 crossovers. On the other side are the tattooed hard asses who graduated from the tool-box school of truck design that inspired the Nissan Armada/Infiniti QX56, Titan pickup and, now, the Pathfinder and Xterra sport-utes.

It’s not as if I have anything against big, blocky, squared-off sport-utes, per se: God knows I have driven enough of them over the past 30-odd years. But the previous-generation, unibody Pathfinder was such a nice size — just right for the transition from cottage to suburbia to downtown. It was pleasantly styled and — in its latter years when equipped with the 3.5-litre V6 — plenty peppy, with decent handling dynamics.

While driving something else recently, I had a new Pathfinder come up behind me, its presence quickly filling my rear-view mirror and its look one of pure intimidation. When it went by, I swear it left a wake.

Put in perspective with its predecessor, the new Pathfinder is 124 millimetres longer, 150 mm wider, 46 mm taller and 215 kilograms heavier. It has also grown a frame and a third row of seats.

To make up for its increased mass, the engine has been upsized to four litres, a longer-stroke adaptation of the award-winning 3.5L VQ engine series found in the 350Z, Maxima, Altima, Murano and Quest. It is mated to a five-speed automatic transmission.

Imbuing the new Pathfinder with 270 horsepower more than compensates for the SUV’s larger mass. The extra ponies mean the mid-sized sport-ute hustles to 100 kilometres an hour in eight seconds when acceleration is called for — not to mention 80 to 120 in a sporting 6.5 seconds — yet the Pathfinder will also cruise stress-free at 100 km/h while turning over just 2,000 r.p.m. As a side note, both Transport Canada and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have been under fire recently for their unrealistic fuel economy results — the former’s 15.5 litres (18.3 m.p.g.) per 100 km city and 10.4 L/100 km highway (27 m.p.g.) ratings for the Pathfinder are hopelessly optimistic. The best I could achieve with the Off-Road over a week of mixed driving was 15.1 L/100 km (18.7 m.p.g.).

What differentiates the SE Off-Road from the rest of the Pathfinder lineup are its Rancho off-road performance shocks, underbody skid plates, off-road tires (BF Goodrich Rugged Trail) and — new for the model — hill descent control (HDC) and hill start assist (HSA). The ride, for the most part, is surprisingly well damped. It’s only when hitting sharp-edged irregularities in the road surface, such as potholes, that harshness creeps in. The engine-speed-sensitive, power rack-and-pinion steering is light and reasonably direct as well.

The four-wheel disc brakes with ABS include electronic brake-force distribution and brake assist. Considering its 2,169-kilogram avoirdupois, the Pathfinder stops from 100 km/h in a commendably short 40.1 metres.

The SE Off-Road is equipped with a standard four-wheel-drive system with two-speed transfer case, lacking the more advanced All-Mode 4WD that is found in the LE (which has 2WD/Auto/ 4Hi/4Lo and an electronically controlled transfer case). Vehicle Dynamic Control, along with an off-road traction system, is standard across the lineup.

Those of shorter stature will find the Pathfinder’s running boards handy for climbing into the cabin; taller folks (like me) think they just get in the way. Once inside, the Pathfinder’s cabin is laid out in a contemporary but straightforward look, with a good choice of materials and trim but not a lot of adornment. Nissan backlights all the major buttons and controls in a soft orange, which makes it very easy to find them at night. Adjustable pedals are standard, which helps people of varying heights find a more comfortable driving position. The seats in the tester were very comfortable, although they would benefit from a heat function on colder days.

Forward visibility from the front seat is first rate. Rear-view visibility isn’t too bad, although there is a bit of a blind spot at the back pillars on the driver’s side, which calls for careful positioning of the mirrors.

Nissan touts the fact that the split fold-down second- and third-row seats can be dropped down individually, combining with the fold-down front-passenger seat to provide 64 different seating/cargo configurations. That said, leg room for taller second-row occupants is at a premium (especially knee room) when the front seats are back in their tracks, and the third row is best left for the kiddies. With the back seats in place, cargo capacity is a marginal 16.5 cubic feet. When down, the cargo floor is completely flat and the area squares off with a useful 49.2 cu. ft. of capacity. Drop the second row and a party-room-like 79.2 cu. ft. opens up.

Other than my dislike of its styling (which, unfortunately, also includes the Infiniti QX56, Honda Element and Land Rover LR3 as fellow “fashion” individualists), there is much to appreciate in the blocky Pathfinder. It might lack some of the urban friendliness of its predecessor, but it hangs in tough in its own right and it adds quite a bit in the recreational use department.